2nd smallest video board in the Majors, hasn't been upgraded in 10 years now.

Give us an HD video display that spans the gap between the two innermost light towers. I want the space station astronauts to see replays, and for Jerry Jones to be jealous.

:reinsy

"You people are crazy if you think I'll spend the money for something like that! You don't even come to the games! Who the hell cares what kind of video board we have? So there!"

BringBackBlkJack

04-15-2013, 10:03 AM

Damn, when the Braves' scoreboard was erected, it was the largest HD display in the world. Now it's merely the 10th largest in MLB.

tebman

04-15-2013, 10:04 AM

I replied to the Sox fan survey a few weeks ago and commented on the scoreboard. The video screen's size isn't as important to me as what's on the whole surface. It's a scoreboard, but there's no score on it.

I suppose the entire centerfield board could be covered with a video screen, since the technology exists now. The only limit is the cost, but isn't that what sponsors are for? In Bill Veeck's book, "Veeck As In Wreck," he told the story of the construction of the original monster board in 1960. It cost over $300,000 to build, but the cost was borne entirely by the sign company who recouped their money from ad revenue in a few years.

To me, the board should carry the line score, the ball/strike/out count, and basic stats (hitter's BA, pitcher's ERA, etc.). Everything beyond that is gravy. That leaves plenty of room for ads, replays, novelties, trivia, and whatever else they choose to display.

And this is the home of the White Sox -- the place where home-run celebrations began as over-the-top eruptions of goofiness. In the design of the 1960 board, Veeck was inspired by a pinball machine in Saroyan's play, "The Time of Your Life," that exploded in celebration of a jackpot score. Fireworks, of course, but also Roman candles spitting out the top, lights that chased and flashed in random patterns, smoke, sound effects (dive bombers, Hallelujah Chorus, etc.), strobes, and occasional surprises like "TILT!" signs. The USCF board has the fireworks and lovely chase lights, but it could use more personality and unpredictability.

A full-size video board could give them more options for that, in addition to the lights and the fireworks. And as a side benefit it could actually be a board that shows the score. :redneck

roylestillman

04-15-2013, 10:39 AM

I gotta believe that this is in the works (I noticed the rusting pinwheels were not touched up over the off season) but the days of having the stadium authority pay for it while the Sox get all the revenue is over. It's a dollars and cents issue that had to be swinging the Sox way if the cost of a new board is going down. I hope they use the opportunity rework the board back to the Veeck 60's design scoreboard framing.

Hitmen77

04-15-2013, 11:28 AM

I think the Sox scoreboards are terrible and it's a disgrace for a franchise that was once known for its ("exploding") scoreboard.

The center board is tiny by today's standards and doesn't have much relevant information about the game at hand. The left field scoreboard is the one that has most of the current game info, but its "white light" technology is laughably old and view of it is obstructed at many seats along the 3B line. The RF "out of town" scoreboard is the newest and has an odd mix of out of town info with current game info squeezed in there too. Overall it's a very crappy set up!

Another gripe I have is that the ribbon boards are solely for ads or cheesy animations. No game information at all. Other MLB parks are able to incorporate game info into their ribbon board, but not at the Cell.

Interesting how just about every other MLB team has been able to find a way to upgrade their scoreboard, but the Sox for some reason can't do it. I know, I know: "would you rather have money put into a good scoreboard or into fielding a competitive team?" Oh wait, we have neither. :mad:

dickallen15

04-15-2013, 11:36 AM

The Sox don't own their park. They don't buy scoreboards. Didn't Brooks say there had to be certain upgrades from other teams before they could get an upgrade?

Take the complaints to the Stadium Authority.

The fact is, whenever they replace the scoreboard, in 5 years fans will be jealous of other teams' scoreboards.

Carolina Kenny

04-15-2013, 11:37 AM

I think the Sox scoreboards are terrible and it's a disgrace for a franchise that was once known for its ("exploding") scoreboard.

The center board is tiny by today's standards and doesn't have much relevant information about the game at hand. The left field scoreboard is the one that has most of the current game info, but its "white light" technology is laughably old and view of it is obstructed at many seats along the 3B line. The RF "out of town" scoreboard is the newest and has an odd mix of out of town info with current game info squeezed in there too. Overall it's a very crappy set up!

Another gripe I have is that the ribbon boards are solely for ads or cheesy animations. No game information at all. Other MLB parks are able to incorporate game info into their ribbon board, but not at the Cell.

More fuel to the fire that the current Sox ownership/marketing team lacks any imagination. More inane season "slogans', loud canned music, the Sox have gone for the easy routine route for years. This club is moribund and sinking fast.

Interesting how just about every other MLB team has been able to find a way to upgrade their scoreboard, but the Sox for some reason can't do it. I know, I know: "would you rather have money put into a good scoreboard or into fielding a competitive team?" Oh wait, we have neither. :mad:

More fuel to the fire that the current Sox ownership/marketing team lacks any imagination. More inane season "slogans', loud canned music, the Sox have gone for the easy routine route for years. This club is moribund and sinking fast.

skobabe8

04-15-2013, 11:42 AM

I gotta believe that this is in the works (I noticed the rusting pinwheels were not touched up over the off season) but the days of having the stadium authority pay for it while the Sox get all the revenue is over. It's a dollars and cents issue that had to be swinging the Sox way if the cost of a new board is going down. I hope they use the opportunity rework the board back to the Veeck 60's design scoreboard framing.

I think so too. I think it's possible that they are waiting a couple of years to use next generation screen technology that is currently being developed for TVs (2160p Ultra High Definition).

I hope so anyway. I'm surprised we are not the smallest in MLB. I assumed we were.

ChiSoxFann

04-15-2013, 11:43 AM

When I saw the Wrigley renovation story in the Sun-Times this was the first thing I thought of, the Cubs will have a better scoreboard than the Sox.

The CF board is really sad and is basically used just to put up a photo of the batter these days. And I've noticed the rust on the pinwheels and several burnt out lightbulbs too. The RF board can be tough to see and I wish it was just used for out of town scores, no need to put both lineups on the sides, IMO.

And if it is a sports authority thing, nearly every team in MLB has a better board than the Sox.

Jerko

04-15-2013, 11:47 AM

I wonder if they could put an HD board in each outfield section. From my vantage point in 163, the RF board may as well not exist due to the fan deck. I can see the LF board easily enough, but that can be upgraded. Looks like a gigantic, monochrome lite-brite.

lpneck

04-21-2013, 10:17 PM

It's absolutely appalling that not one but BOTH of the upper deck scoreboards had panels that were not functioning on both Saturday and Sunday this weekend (not the ribbon board, the actual scoreboards in the corners). It was embarrassing and looked like something from a little league field. I could MAYBE understand that if the panel stopped working on Saturday there wasn't enough time to get it fixed before the game. For it not to be fixed for Sunday's game is inexcusable and really was a metaphor to me about how lazy this franchise is.

I get that it's a small detail compared to, say, the .108 hitting DH. But I'm a pretty big believer that organizations that don't pay attention to small details aren't very good about big details, either.

blandman

04-21-2013, 10:20 PM

I'll pass on the scoreboard upgrade. In fact, let's sell the old one and see if we can get someone to bat cleanup.

Brian26

04-21-2013, 10:30 PM

I get that it's a small detail compared to, say, the .108 hitting DH. But I'm a pretty big believer that organizations that don't pay attention to small details aren't very good about big details, either.

This is an even smaller detail, but I was surprised today on how many mistakes were up on the leftfield scoreboard.

Hicks came up in the 7th, and the board said he grounded out to first last time at-bat. I had one 1-3 on my card. I had Gamecast going on my phone to back me up that he grounded out to the pitcher.

Next batter up was Eduardo Escobar. I happened to look uo at the board again. I know I saw him fly out to left (I had F-7 on my card) in his first AB, and the Gamecast backed me up on that, but the board said he flew out to right.

I'm sure 99% of the people in the park could not care less and probably don't even look at the board, but the inconsistency and lack of quality control seems par for the course.

WhiteSox5187

04-21-2013, 11:14 PM

This is an even smaller detail, but I was surprised today on how many mistakes were up on the leftfield scoreboard.

Hicks came up in the 7th, and the board said he grounded out to first last time at-bat. I had one 1-3 on my card. I had Gamecast going on my phone to back me up that he grounded out to the pitcher.

Next batter up was Eduardo Escobar. I happened to look uo at the board again. I know I saw him fly out to left (I had F-7 on my card) in his first AB, and the Gamecast backed me up on that, but the board said he flew out to right.

I'm sure 99% of the people in the park could not care less and probably don't even look at the board, but the inconsistency and lack of quality control seems par for the course.

Inconsistency and lack of quality seems to be the White Sox operational philosophy.

Dsell93

04-21-2013, 11:39 PM

As much as I agree to an extent that repairs/renovations are neccesary, I can't help but ask myself...why are you all fans in the first place? If you want nice toys, go to Yankee Stadium and enjoy your $10 beer. Personally, I like watching baseball in the first row for 23 bucks and treating myself to some good grub, something the Sox do...(holy crap, you ready?) better than most ballparks. It's easy to be cynical...especially with a s****y team like this one but don't forget we still have urinals :wink:

Boondock Saint

04-21-2013, 11:59 PM

As much as I agree to an extent that repairs/renovations are neccesary, I can't help but ask myself...why are you all fans in the first place? If you want nice toys, go to Yankee Stadium and enjoy your $10 beer. Personally, I like watching baseball in the first row for 23 bucks and treating myself to some good grub, something the Sox do...(holy crap, you ready?) better than most ballparks. It's easy to be cynical...especially with a s****y team like this one but don't forget we still have urinals :wink:

This is Chicago, not palookaville. If the Sox don't want to be viewed as the Second City's second baseball team, they should at least keep up with league standards on their video board, which is now a common feature in sports stadiums everywhere. We're not ahead of the curve because we have a video board anymore. We've got an old, outdated, undersized one, and it sucks. An update isn't a silly effort to show that we can match Yankee extravagance, it's just keeping up with modern, everyday technology.

Harry Potter

04-22-2013, 12:16 AM

This is an even smaller detail, but I was surprised today on how many mistakes were up on the leftfield scoreboard.

Hicks came up in the 7th, and the board said he grounded out to first last time at-bat. I had one 1-3 on my card. I had Gamecast going on my phone to back me up that he grounded out to the pitcher.

Next batter up was Eduardo Escobar. I happened to look uo at the board again. I know I saw him fly out to left (I had F-7 on my card) in his first AB, and the Gamecast backed me up on that, but the board said he flew out to right.

I'm sure 99% of the people in the park could not care less and probably don't even look at the board, but the inconsistency and lack of quality control seems par for the course.

I noticed mistakes, or slow to make changes, at Saturday's game as well.

Dsell93

04-22-2013, 12:32 AM

This is Chicago, not palookaville. If the Sox don't want to be viewed as the Second City's second baseball team, they should at least keep up with league standards on their video board, which is now a common feature in sports stadiums everywhere. We're not ahead of the curve because we have a video board anymore. We've got an old, outdated, undersized one, and it sucks. An update isn't a silly effort to show that we can match Yankee extravagance, it's just keeping up with modern, everyday technology.

Fair enough, you make some valid points. Nonetheless, I still think there are more important things to worry about right now like having a .500 team and somehow marketing a crappy product to thousands of fairly pissed off people. I think someone mentioned the old scoreboard not receiving any maintenance lately, perhaps an upgrade's already on the to-do list. Ask Brooks?

Mr. Jinx

04-22-2013, 07:29 AM

Fair enough, you make some valid points. Nonetheless, I still think there are more important things to worry about right now like having a .500 team and somehow marketing a crappy product to thousands of fairly pissed off people. I think someone mentioned the old scoreboard not receiving any maintenance lately, perhaps an upgrade's already on the to-do list. Ask Brooks?

I'm sure the Sox can do more than 1 thing at a time, it isn't an either/or proposition.

Hartman

04-22-2013, 08:57 AM

I would love to see a huge center field board that takes up the whole panel, but whatever upgrades are chosen, the left field black and white board HAS GOT TO GO! I don't care of ads reclaim that space to make up for the lost ads on a center field board.

Golden Sox

04-22-2013, 09:00 AM

I've given a great deal of thought to all this so here goes: I firmly believe the White Sox are going to be looking to move to another stadium in around 10 years. (The lease expires in 2026) One of the problems that I see, is what would the State of Illinois do with the Cell if the White Sox move to another location in the Chicagoland area? That being the case, perhaps the State of Illinois will give the White Sox another sweetheart deal at the Cell and will offer upgrades to the Cell. One of the upgrades will be a bigger more modern scoreboard. I also wouldn't be surprised to see a retractible roof built over the Cell. I remember Hawk and Stone talking about putting a retractible roof over the Cell last season. The White Sox attendance has been hurt in the past and this season because of the cold weather in April. It's certainly no fun going to a game in April, May and September freezing you dupa off.

Mr. Jinx

04-22-2013, 09:03 AM

I've given a great deal of thought to all this so here goes: I firmly believe the White Sox are going to be looking to move to another stadium in around 10 years. (The lease expires in 2026) One of the problems that I see, is what would the State of Illinois do with the Cell if the White Sox move to another location in the Chicagoland area? That being the case, perhaps the State of Illinois will give the White Sox another sweetheart deal at the Cell and will offer upgrades to the Cell. One of the upgrades will be a bigger more modern scoreboard. I also wouldn't be surprised to see a retractible roof built over the Cell. I remember Hawk and Stone talking about putting a retractible roof over the Cell last season. The White Sox attendance has been hurt in the past and this season because of the cold weather in April. It certainly no fun going to a game in April, May and September freezing you dupa off.

I will be the first to admit I have absolutely no engineering knowledge whatsoever, but it just seems to me intuitively that it would be cheaper to just build a new stadium with a roof then try to retrofit an old outdoor stadium with a retractable roof. Has that ever been done anywhere?

SephClone89

04-22-2013, 09:06 AM

I will be the first to admit I have absolutely no engineering knowledge whatsoever, but it just seems to me intuitively that it would be cheaper to just build a new stadium with a roof then try to retrofit an old outdoor stadium with a retractable roof. Has that ever been done anywhere?

Wimbledon's Centre Court comes to mind.

Rocky Soprano

04-22-2013, 09:41 AM

I've given a great deal of thought to all this so here goes: I firmly believe the White Sox are going to be looking to move to another stadium in around 10 years. (The lease expires in 2026) One of the problems that I see, is what would the State of Illinois do with the Cell if the White Sox move to another location in the Chicagoland area? That being the case, perhaps the State of Illinois will give the White Sox another sweetheart deal at the Cell and will offer upgrades to the Cell. One of the upgrades will be a bigger more modern scoreboard. I also wouldn't be surprised to see a retractible roof built over the Cell. I remember Hawk and Stone talking about putting a retractible roof over the Cell last season. The White Sox attendance has been hurt in the past and this season because of the cold weather in April. It certainly no fun going to a game in April, May and September freezing you dupa off.

I would love to see the Sox get a new park right by the lake, next to Soldier Field. I honestly don't know if there is even land available but I would love the concept of having the Sox in lakefront property.

I don't see it happening and think the Sox will be at USCF for a very LONG time. I could see them doing more renovations or building a new park where it currently stands.

russ99

04-22-2013, 10:04 AM

I would love to see a huge center field board that takes up the whole panel, but whatever upgrades are chosen, the left field black and white board HAS GOT TO GO! I don't care of ads reclaim that space to make up for the lost ads on a center field board.

I'm with you there.

But if I have to choose between the Sox spending on better players, fixing the farm system and figuring out how to market better vs. a bigger video board, I know which one I'd choose...

Mr. Jinx

04-22-2013, 10:26 AM

I would love to see the Sox get a new park right by the lake, next to Soldier Field. I honestly don't know if there is even land available but I would love the concept of having the Sox in lakefront property.

I don't see it happening and think the Sox will be at USCF for a very LONG time. I could see them doing more renovations or building a new park where it currently stands.

I would love being at the game but that would absolutely suck for transportation. Either take the million mile march from the red line or sit in traffic all evening long. Ugh.

dwitt76

04-22-2013, 10:33 AM

Ever since Milwaukee redid theirs a couple years back, i have been longing for the white sox to do something similiar to the center field scoreboard.

Hitmen77

04-22-2013, 10:48 AM

The Sox will likely be under new ownership by the time the current lease at the Cell expires. Regardless, I don't think there is any way in hell the Sox will get any more state money toward a new stadium. Once the current lease ends in 2027, I think the Sox can say goodbye to their current sweetheart lease deal.

I'm with you there.

But if I have to choose between the Sox spending on better players, fixing the farm system and figuring out how to market better vs. a bigger video board, I know which one I'd choose...

The problem is that the Sox are doing neither of these things. So, this either-or proposition doesn't exist IMO.

Even if the Sox were to offer to start making a serious investment in revamping the talent level in the organization, I just don't by the argument of "well, what do you want? Good players or a decent scoreboard? We can only have one of these things"

If the Sox are such a shoestring operation that an investment to upgrade the scoreboard would come if they sacrificed any effort to infuse more talent into this organization, then that's just pathetic.

SoxandtheCityTee

04-22-2013, 04:31 PM

The Sox will likely be under new ownership by the time the current lease at the Cell expires. Regardless, I don't think there is any way in hell the Sox will get any more state money toward a new stadium. Once the current lease ends in 2027, I think the Sox can say goodbye to their current sweetheart lease deal.

If the Sox are such a shoestring operation that an investment to upgrade the scoreboard would come if they sacrificed any effort to infuse more talent into this organization, then that's just pathetic.

It sure is. But that's the way it will be. As he nears the end of his life JR is thinking of his "legacy," defined by him as success in business, meaning how much money he made -- for himself, for his family, for his investors -- from owning the team. He will leave that fortune to his descendants, chosen charities, or whatever. Not one penny of that "legacy" will ever be put back into the team -- that's our job, fools, to create something above the rate of return he wants. If the team doesn't produce, resuting in the fans not producing this excess ROR, well that's their fault and ours, but it changes nothing. He got the sweetheart stadium deal of MLB history, six Bulls championships and one World Series ring. He's blissfully content and nothing will change until he's gone.

Harry Chappas

04-22-2013, 05:21 PM

It sure is. But that's the way it will be. As he nears the end of his life JR is thinking of his "legacy," defined by him as success in business, meaning how much money he made -- for himself, for his family, for his investors -- from owning the team. He will leave that fortune to his descendants, chosen charities, or whatever. Not one penny of that "legacy" will ever be put back into the team -- that's our job, fools, to create something above the rate of return he wants. If the team doesn't produce, resuting in the fans not producing this excess ROR, well that's their fault and ours, but it changes nothing. He got the sweetheart stadium deal of MLB history, six Bulls championships and one World Series ring. He's blissfully content and nothing will change until he's gone.

Any guesses as to whether or not the Reinsdorf family would sell when Jerry passes? I certainly don't wish ill will upon JR, but I sometimes wonder if there wouldn't be a complete overhaul of the team - ala the Blackhawks - when ownership is passed to one of his kids.

Alternatively, I wonder if the Sox wouldn't benefit from a sale. It seems like most recent franchise purchases have been made by extremely wealthy ownership groups who likely view their teams, in part, as vanity projects and understand that capital investments need to be made even if attendance doesn't always support them.

I think the Sox organization would greatly benefit from a complete restructuring. It's almost criminal that they couldn't capitalize on the city's first WS championship in any of our lifetimes. I know that Sox fans are culpable as well, but they really don't do us many favors.

But back to the scoreboard - it may seem like an odd thing to fret about, but as someone else pointed out, it reflects poorly on the organization and, IMO, makes the entire product feel...cheap. Given that a scoreboard upgrade would probably increase ad revenue, it'd probably pay for itself in due time.

mrfourni

04-22-2013, 05:21 PM

I don't see it happening and think the Sox will be at USCF for a very LONG time. I could see them doing more renovations or building a new park where it currently stands.

I agree with this and hope that a new owner decides to build new rather than extend the current lease. But my guess as to what will happen is that the Sox and the State will negotiate another lease extension that is extremely beneficial to the Sox. While the State probably can't afford to build anyone a new stadium, they also can't afford to let the Sox move out of the stadium and create a vacancy that is literally impossible to fill.

Golden Sox

04-22-2013, 06:50 PM

If the White Sox get new ownership in the future, it certainly won't be some poor person buying the team. I could be wrong but isn't Rocky Wirtz one of the investors in the White Sox?. From what I know he has been a lifelong White Sox fan. I wouldn't be surprised to see Wirtz buy the White Sox and the rest of the Bulls and United Center holdings that are owned by Reinsdorf. I read somewhere that Reinsdorf owns 20% of the White Sox, 20% of the Bulls and a percentage of the United Center. I'm sure Rocky Wirtz would like to buy all 3
holdings from Reinsdorf. Doing so would make the White Sox, Bulls and Blackhawks worth some serious TV money in the future. Sportsvision didn't do well the first time around, but Chicago wasn't wired for cable back then like it is now. I do wish JR would be more specific as to what will happen in the future to the White Sox franchise.

roylestillman

04-22-2013, 07:08 PM

A few things here. I don't think it's an issue of new scoreboard vs investment on payroll. The scoreboard is virtually its own business. Enhanced ad revenue should more than pay for a new board. I remember reading that the lower panel, currently showing the Vienna Beef sign had to be discounted after the Fan Deck blocked the view of it from good stretches of the lower bowl. Raising the board, incorporating the fixed panels into the active screen and retooling or eliminating the old black and white left field board should allow lots of new ad revenue. The only question that's out there is can they sell it.

I also don't think it's a matter of why bother, we're out of this park in ten years, since that's about the life span of these boards anyway. I do think we are about ten years away from talk of a new park, again looking at the average lifespan of ballparks. We are already the 9th oldest or so. The State may not give a darn about what to do with the old park. It will be paid for by then. They don't get any rent from it. ( That token $1.5 million is nonsense when you look at the mandatory maintenance dollars they have to pony up annually.) The tax revenue that was set up to pay for it is scheduled to be siphoned off to pay the debt service of the Soldier Field renovation. Tough to predict what will happen ten years from now, but expect models of the new Las Vegas, or Charlotte, or Portland White Sox stadium to be trotted out.

mrfourni

04-22-2013, 09:41 PM

A few things here. I don't think it's an issue of new scoreboard vs investment on payroll. The scoreboard is virtually its own business. Enhanced ad revenue should more than pay for a new board. I remember reading that the lower panel, currently showing the Vienna Beef sign had to be discounted after the Fan Deck blocked the view of it from good stretches of the lower bowl. Raising the board, incorporating the fixed panels into the active screen and retooling or eliminating the old black and white left field board should allow lots of new ad revenue. The only question that's out there is can they sell it.

I also don't think it's a matter of why bother, we're out of this park in ten years, since that's about the life span of these boards anyway. I do think we are about ten years away from talk of a new park, again looking at the average lifespan of ballparks. We are already the 9th oldest or so. The State may not give a darn about what to do with the old park. It will be paid for by then. They don't get any rent from it. ( That token $1.5 million is nonsense when you look at the mandatory maintenance dollars they have to pony up annually.) The tax revenue that was set up to pay for it is scheduled to be siphoned off to pay the debt service of the Soldier Field renovation. Tough to predict what will happen ten years from now, but expect models of the new Las Vegas, or Charlotte, or Portland White Sox stadium to be trotted out.

Unless the cable tv model changes dramatically in the next ten years, I don't think the Sox are a serious threat to leave the Chicago market. With these new tv deals, these teams in large markets are making more money from tv than attendance.

Therefore, I think it's much more likely we'll be seeing models of the Schaumburg, Rosemont, or Tinley Park White Sox stadiums than the Vegas, Charlotte or Portland

DSpivack

04-22-2013, 09:46 PM

Unless the cable tv model changes dramatically in the next ten years, I don't think the Sox are a serious threat to leave the Chicago market. With these new tv deals, these teams in large markets are making more money from tv than attendance.

Therefore, I think it's much more likely we'll be seeing models of the Schaumburg, Rosemont, or Tinley Park White Sox stadiums than the Vegas, Charlotte or Portland

The Sox are going nowhere. Just because the lease is up doesn't mean they're likely to move. There is no public money to pay for the park and the team ain't ponying up the cash themselves.

Noneck

04-22-2013, 09:52 PM

The Sox are going nowhere. Just because the lease is up doesn't mean they're likely to move. There is no public money to pay for the park and the team ain't ponying up the cash themselves.

2026 is a long way off and look at Rosemont, they were willing to do it for the other chicago team now. Dont be so sure of what can and cant be done.

DSpivack

04-22-2013, 09:53 PM

2026 is a long way off and look at Rosemont, they were willing to do it for the other chicago team now. Dont be so sure of what can and cant be done.

Rosemont was nothing but a distraction.

Noneck

04-22-2013, 10:06 PM

Rosemont was nothing but a distraction.

Im not so sure about that on Rosemonts side of it. This is a village whose streets are lined with gold.

DSpivack

04-22-2013, 10:17 PM

Im not so sure about that on Rosemonts side of it. This is a village whose streets are lined with gold.

I doubt even Rosemont had the money to pay for a stadium. And I doubt the Cubs were ever serious about it.

Noneck

04-22-2013, 10:50 PM

I doubt even Rosemont had the money to pay for a stadium. And I doubt the Cubs were ever serious about it.

Im telling you Rosemont is flat out loaded,regarding the cubs I totally agree.

mrfourni

04-22-2013, 11:19 PM

The Sox are going nowhere. Just because the lease is up doesn't mean they're likely to move. There is no public money to pay for the park and the team ain't ponying up the cash themselves.

I agree, I just think that the sox will try to use suburban locations as leverage to secure favorable lease terms.

doublem23

04-22-2013, 11:21 PM

Any guesses as to whether or not the Reinsdorf family would sell when Jerry passes? I certainly don't wish ill will upon JR, but I sometimes wonder if there wouldn't be a complete overhaul of the team - ala the Blackhawks - when ownership is passed to one of his kids.

Everything I have ever read has suggested Jerry's son Michael wants to keep the Bulls but sell the Sox.

amsteel

04-23-2013, 12:16 AM

2026 is a long way off and look at Rosemont, they were willing to do it for the other chicago team now. Dont be so sure of what can and cant be done.

Even the Sox know moving north of Madison would be suicide, not even considering the fight the Cubs would put up. The 355 corridor on the other hand...probably wouldn't work either considering the lack of public trans and recent downtown population boom, but its a thought.

Noneck

04-23-2013, 12:19 AM

Even the Sox know moving north of Madison would be suicide, not even considering the fight the Cubs would put up. The 355 corridor on the other hand...probably wouldn't work either considering the lack of public trans and recent downtown population boom, but its a thought.

Im sorry I am not going into my suburban argument again , I said my peace on that in another thread and am burnt out on it.

DSpivack

04-23-2013, 12:24 AM

Everything I have ever read has suggested Jerry's son Michael wants to keep the Bulls but sell the Sox.

That's what most interests me here, who the future owner is and whether or not JR or someone else in the ownership will keep the team or sell.

nsolo

04-23-2013, 08:16 AM

As it stands, who would want to see instant replays of this teams performance? Most replays require highlights. The majority of those are coming from the opposition.

wassagstdu

04-23-2013, 11:18 AM

As it stands, who would want to see instant replays of this teams performance? Most replays require highlights. The majority of those are coming from the opposition.

It's not the size of the screen but what you put on it that matters. I suggest they leave it small for a few years. Shrink the scores, shrink the replays.

Harry Chappas

04-23-2013, 11:33 AM

Even the Sox know moving north of Madison would be suicide, not even considering the fight the Cubs would put up. The 355 corridor on the other hand...probably wouldn't work either considering the lack of public trans and recent downtown population boom, but its a thought.

I'm not sure I agree. While the south suburbs are supposedly "Sox country" - I wonder if they built some state-of-art facility in say, Rosemont, if they would draw 'Chicago' fans.

I doubt they'll move but if they do, I hope they wouldn't limit themselves to the south suburbs/south side.

lpneck

07-02-2013, 12:03 AM

It's absolutely appalling that not one but BOTH of the upper deck scoreboards had panels that were not functioning on both Saturday and Sunday this weekend (not the ribbon board, the actual scoreboards in the corners). It was embarrassing and looked like something from a little league field. I could MAYBE understand that if the panel stopped working on Saturday there wasn't enough time to get it fixed before the game. For it not to be fixed for Sunday's game is inexcusable and really was a metaphor to me about how lazy this franchise is.

I get that it's a small detail compared to, say, the .108 hitting DH. But I'm a pretty big believer that organizations that don't pay attention to small details aren't very good about big details, either.

So I am pulling another old thread up about the White Sox game day experience- I posted this after a weekend trip I had taken earlier this year in mid-April where the side scoreboads were not functioning.

Lo and behold I go to the game on Sunday, and this time the scoreboard where the hitter's stat line is supposed to be on the out-of-town scoreboard in right field is not working. The panel where things like HR, RBI, OBP, etc. was out and those numbers didn't fuction.

Heading to the game on Tuesday night as well and not real optimistic it is going to be fixed.

2 trips to Chicago, 2 (different) scoreboards that were not working on each trip. I would be embarrassed for a high school that couldn't get numbers on a scoreboard to work.

LoveYourSuit

07-02-2013, 12:37 AM

Even the Sox know moving north of Madison would be suicide, not even considering the fight the Cubs would put up. The 355 corridor on the other hand...probably wouldn't work either considering the lack of public trans and recent downtown population boom, but its a thought.

Not considering any type of move (if it makes sense) would be suicide too.

Let's face it, for as much pride as people want to take of being "South Siders" they do not support this team. I'm tired of this argument that you can't move away from this "fan base." Northwest Indiana, OakLawn, Everygreen Park, Palos Hills, Bridgeport? Obviously not close to enough to put 30K in that park each and every night.

Milw

07-02-2013, 09:30 AM

Addison (the city) is north of Madison, and he Sox were ready to move there two decades ago. Given that relatively little has changed demographically since then, not sure why anyone thinks Rosemont would be out if the question next time around.

doublem23

07-02-2013, 09:45 AM

Addison (the city) is north of Madison, and he Sox were ready to move there two decades ago. Given that relatively little has changed demographically since then, not sure why anyone thinks Rosemont would be out if the question next time around.

Ugh, I don't want to rehash this argument again, but let's also bear in mind that at the same time, the Sox were also strongly considering moving to Tropicana Field in Tampa, as well, which as it turns out, would have been a complete and utter fiasco, as well. The Rays have been one of the better teams in baseball for several years now and yet they continue to flirt with the Indians and Marlins at the bottom of the per game attendance barrel. Just a few things to think about before we start proclaiming that the Sox really knew what they were talking about when they threatened to move the team anywhere from Bridgeport (and wound up landing a sweet deal from the state to pay for it all).

nsolo

07-02-2013, 12:29 PM

OK, this is from Sunday's Tribune, and the graphic comes from an article discussing the pros and cons of adding a Jumbotron to Wrigley, but it's pretty shocking from a Sox fan's perspective:

2nd smallest video board in the Majors, hasn't been upgraded in 10 years now.

Jealous of things that may be? The Cubs already outdraw us with their turn of LAST century scoreboard that is completely manual. Steam power for that thing would be modern improvement. Just get rid of the corny sound effects and the too loud music.

Worrying about theirs being bigger than ours reminds me of an old joke. "Who are you going to please with that?" "Me."

Boondock Saint

07-02-2013, 01:45 PM

Jealous of things that may be? The Cubs already outdraw us with their turn of LAST century scoreboard that is completely manual. Steam power for that thing would be modern improvement. Just get rid of the corny sound effects and the too loud music.

Worrying about theirs being bigger than ours reminds me of an old joke. "Who are you going to please with that?" "Me."

You do realize that this doesn't have anything to do with trying to outdo the Cubs, right? There's one team in baseball with a ****tier video board than us, and that's the team who just had their locker rooms flooded with actual ****. How the **** are we letting them be the only team in the league doing worse than us in terms of a now common modern amenity?

nsolo

07-02-2013, 02:26 PM

You do realize that this doesn't have anything to do with trying to outdo the Cubs, right? There's one team in baseball with a ****tier video board than us, and that's the team who just had their locker rooms flooded with actual ****. How the **** are we letting them be the only team in the league doing worse than us in terms of a now common modern amenity?

Well, the first post of this thread states "an article discussing the pros and cons of adding a Jumbotron to Wrigley". So, since I assume that the Cubs still play there, that was a discussion on how the they might be installing a bigger "modern amenity" then we have.

doublem23

07-02-2013, 02:50 PM

Well, the first post of this thread states "an article discussing the pros and cons of adding a Jumbotron to Wrigley". So, since I assume that the Cubs still play there, that was a discussion on how the they might be installing a bigger "modern amenity" then we have.